Salt dispenser



May 19, 1942. 0, F RD 2,283,547

SALT DISPENSER Filed July 9, 1938 INVENTOR DAVID o.- FORD (ZZW W.

ATTORNEYS Patented May 19, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SALT DISPENSER David Otis Ford, Petersburg, Va. Application July 9, 1938, Serial No. 218,263

9 Claims.

repeatedly refill the salt and pepper shakers and only occasionally wash them. This is especially true in the case of the salt container where the deliquescent salt accumulates dust and forms a.

sticky film forming an ideal culture for bacteria growth. The average person uses very little salt at a sitting so that it would not be economical to throw awayeven the small size containers now in general use and the bulk of the salt which would ordinarily be used at one sitting is usually.

so small that if contained in a conventional size package such as an envelope it would be difficult to handle. y

The primary object of the invention is to provide a salt or similar merchandise containingpackage which can be formed so cheaply as to warrant its being thrown away after a single use; which would contain just about enough salt or other desired material for one use and which package would beso conformed and designed that it could be easily manipulated by the fingers to ejectits contents.

Broadly the invention is attained by providing a package including a container'madefrom a paper roll and having about the size and appearance of a small sized cigarette and which cigarette-like container has been found to be of about the right volumetric capacity to contain the amount of salt usually used at one sitting.

The invention contemplates the forming of such salt containing cigarettes by the usual cigarette forming machine now in general use and the providing of a package which will be constructed under controlled sanitary conditions at the factory so that the user will be assured that the package has not been contaminated prior to use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simplified form of paper package of the type described constructed so that the tearing off or rupturing of one end of the cigarette-like package will so mutilate it that it will readily show that it is not in its originally packaged form; and which mutilation or tearing will at the same time form a restricted discharge opening or expose a sifter top to permit in either case a regulated discharge of the contents through the opening so formed. 7

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will be in part obvious from an inspection of the accompanying drawing and in part will be more fully. set forth in the following particular description of the device embodying the invention, and the invention also consists in certain new and novel features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing: I

Fig. l is a view in elevation of a preferred embodiment of the invention in its sealed condition before use and shown somewhat on an enlarged scale; 7

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view very much enlarged from the showing in Fig. 1 and with its mid-portion broken away;

Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 are transverse sectional views taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2, looking upwardly to show the closure disc partly torn away to expose the filler and looking downwardly through the sifter forming plug;

Fig. 5 is a plan view'of the sheet paper blank 7 before it is rolled and bent to form the container of the preceding figures; a

Fig. 6 is a blank from which another embodiment of the invention is constructed;

Fig. 7 is. a view in side elevation of the form of container constructed from the blankof Fig.

Fig. 8 is a detailed enlarged vertical sectional view of the upper end of the container shown in Fig. 7 with partsbroken away to show internal construction and contents;

Fig. 9 shows another embodiment of the invention and constituting a combined saltor pepper shaker; and r V r Fig. 10 shows a blank from which theFig. 9 embodiment of the invention may be formed.

In the drawing and referring first to the preferred form reference will be madeto the blank of Fig. 5 where there is shown a somewhat rectangular sheet of paperincluding a body portion 10 having onelong edge defined by a narrow extension ll constituting a securing fiap, the inner edge of which is defined by the line and which will usually define the inner edge of the adhesivecontaining area for securing together the long edges in forming the tubular portion of the completed container l3. One of the short ends of the blank is provided with a plurality, in

this case three, integral extensions 14 herein the complete container.

shown to be of frusto-triangular form with rounded outer edges and which formed flaps bend along the score line and superposed one on the other and fastened together by suitable adhesive to form the permanently closed bottom [6 of The opposite or upper short edge I1 is provided with a short slot I8. Just below the inner edge of the slot is positioned a roll 19 of corrugated paper and which roll in the completed container forms a plug incompletely closing the upper end .of the container. This plug performs several functions among which might be noted that in constructing the cigarette-like container on the usual cigarette forming machine, this plug'acts as a temporary barrier to restrain the fluid-like dry salt from escaping out the top of the container; and,

second, when in use, the plug acts as a sifter top with a multitude of openings 20 extending axially therethrough to permit a restrained fiow of the salt, out of the open top of the container.

Located on top of the plug [9 is a fiat closure disc 2| of cardboard snugly fitting within the otherwise open top of the container. The disc is provided with a, laterally extending tab 22 which extends outwardly through the slot 18 and provides a'finger piece which can be readily engaged to lift the. closure out of the container.

container. This exposes the openings 20 through,

the plug l9 and the package can then be used as the ordinary saltshaker. As the container is of some material length, usually a couple of inches long, there is provided a sufiicient extent .of surface to permit the user to hold it between his fingers as he would a pencil and shake the contents therefrom through the opening 20.

Referring to the form of the invention dis closed in Figs. 6 to 8 and considering the paper blank of Fig. 6 there isdisclosed a rectangular body portion 24 from one short edge 25 of which projects bottom forming flaps 26 similar to the flaps It. From the opposite short edge 21 pro- .jects an extension 28 of trapezoidform with its jtion 320i a tapered, conical end 33 which almost comes to a point. As noted in Fig. 8, the pointed endis closed by a plug of wax 34 or it may be closed by a Cellophane cap 35 as shown in Fig. 7. When desired to use this form, the user simply tears off that much of the pointed end which contains the Wax plug 34 or Cellophane cap thus forming arestricted discharge opening of small discharging area.- Even if too much of the top "is torn off the user can still control the rate of discharge of the contents bypinching together opposite sides of the end 33 which outlines the opening so formed.

In the form of the invention shown in Fig. 9, the cylindrical container 36 is provided intermediate its ends with a partition 31 which may be a cardboard disc or a plug of cotton to divide the interior into a salt containing compartment 38 and a pepper containing compartment 39.

The container 36 is made from the blank of v sifterholes in the completed container and adjacent the other end with a plurality of smaller sifter holes 43 constituting pepper sifter holes in the completed container. 7

In transverse alignment with the two sets of sifter holes, the blank is provided with closure flaps 44 and 45 which in the completed container acts to close their respective sets of sifter holes. The curvature of the paper can be depended upon to keep the closure flaps in position to close the sifter holes but it is herein suggested that the flaps may be glued in place preferably leaving an end of each flap loose so that it may be engaged readily by the finger of the user to tear off theflap orat least displace it sufiiciently to expose the sifter holes. In place of the integral closure flaps shown in Figs. 9 and 10 it is within the scope .of the disclosure otherwise to close the sifter holes as by means of a strip of Cellophane temporarily pasted over the sifter holes. In place of the end closure flaps herein disclosed it is su gested that both ends of either the Fig. 1 or Fig. 9 embodiment be closed by a corrugated paper plug such as disclosed at!!! in the first form.

This corrugated paper plug has several uses in the instant situation; it is used as a sieve to retard and evenly spread the flow of salt or other particles; it substantially retards any undesired flow of the salt while the package is being formed and before the ends of the cigarette-like container are sealediit gives form and strength to the necessary strength to the ends of the cigarettes during the time while they are being cut into the proper lengths during the progress of being manufactured; and it assists in the act of sealing the endsof the cigarette by establishing a stiffening pillar or base.

7 It is herein suggested that the cylindrical containers disclosed in Figs. 1 and 9 be formed on a machine resembling a cigarette forming machine in that a long single sheet of paper having temporary closures, such as the plugs l9 be located in pairs properly spaced apart and the sheet rolled into the cigarette form and cut ofi to the desired length by the usual cutters successively severing the resulting long roller by cutting between the plugs of each pair. Afterwards the severed end could be closed by sealing as herein suggested for the several separate forms disclosed.

While the device as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 7 has been described particularly with reference to its use as a salt container and shaker, it is obviously within the scope of the disclosure to use the device to vend other commodities such as sugar or, in fact, any material intended to be discharged in a regulated amount and particularly such merchandise as is usually dispensed in small quantities at a time.

I claim:

1. A paper package of merchandise of cigarette-like form comprising a sheet of paper rolled to form a tubular container and provided at one end with integral flaps coacting in overlapping relation to provide a permanent closure at one end of the container, a roll of corrugated paper forming a plug incompletely closing the opposite end of the container and providing a sifter top, said container provided at the end having the plug with a slot, and a closure-disc fitted between the plug and the adjacent end of the container.

2. A paper package of merchandise of cigarette-like form comprising a sheet of paper rolled to form a tubular container and provided at on end with integral flaps coacting in overlapping relation to provide a permanent closure at one end of the container, a roll of corrugated paper forming a plug incompletely closing the opposite end of the container and providing a sifter top, and means between said plug and the adjacent end of the container providing a temporary closure for the container.

3. A paper package of merchandise of cigarette-like form comprising a sheet of paper rolled to form a tubular container and provided at one end with integral flaps ooacting in overlapping relation to provide a permanent closure at one end of the container, a roll of corrugated paper forming a plug incompletely closing the opposite end of the container and providing a sifter top, and means between said plug and the adjacent end of the container providing a temporary closure for the container, and a wax-like filler between the disc and the adjacent end of the container.

4. A package of merchandise comprising a roll of paper in tubular cigarette form providing a container provided at one end with an integral, permanent closure and provided adjacent the opposite end with a rolled paper plug inserted in the tubular container, incompletely closing said opposite end and forming a sifter top and means for temporarily closing the end having the sifter top.

5. A cylindrical paper package of oigarettelike form, closed at one end, and having a slot at the other end, a sifter closure at the other end adjacent the inner end of the slot and a disclike paper closure for said other end engaging the sifter closure, said disc-like closure provided with a tab projecting outwardly of the package through the slot.

6. A cylindrical paper package of cigarette-like form, closed at one end, and having a slot at the other end, a sifter closure at the other end adjacent the inner end of the slot and a disc-like paper closure for said other end engaging the sifter closure, said disc-like closure provided with a tab projecting outwardly of the package through the slot, and a filler engaging the disc-like closure and adapted to be broken out of the package with the disc-like closure when the tab is elevated out of its slot.

'7. A paper container having an open top substantially of cylindrical form, a roll of corrugated paper forming a plug incompletely closing the open top and providing a sifter top for the container.

8. A paper blank for forming a cigarette-like container including a substantially rectangular body portion. provided at one end with a plurality of extensions forming partly circular flaps adapted to be folded on each other in overlapping relation to provide a closure for the container, the opposite edge provided with a slot and a roll of corrugated paper secured to the blank adjacent the slot.

9. A packaged article forming an individual condiment container and shaker of cylindrical, cigarette-like form provided at one end with a flat bottom closure forming a base for supporting the article in upstanding position, the side of the article including a single sheet of paper like material, initially of rectangular form rolled into its cigarette-like form, with its long flapforming edges slightly overlapping and secured together to form the cylindrical side of a recep-- tacle composed, except for said overlapping edges, solely of a single thickness of material to provide a package which can be easily ma-' nipulated and distorted from its initial form by the fingers of the user to eject its contents, the outer side of said receptacle providing a cylindrical surface adapted to be printed thereon, said article provided with sifter openings at all times exposed to the interior of the receptacle and a flap of paper-like, easily torn material forming a part of the article additional to that part which forms the cylindrical side of-the receptacle and not necessarily contributing to its structural strength, said flap normally covering the outer side of the-sifter openings, and providing a nare row elongated finger piece at all times located external to the cylindrical side ofthe receptacle and the outer end of said flap being loose so as to be engaged readily by the finger of the user to tear off the flap from the balance of the article and thus expose the sifter holes without tearing any part of the cylindrical side of v a the article and thus without afiecting the appearance of the outer side of the cylinder.

DAVID OTIS FORD. 

